“GMO Labeling Moms React to GMA Money-laundering Lawsuit

With fewer than three weeks to Election Day and the Yes on I 522 campaign maintaining its commanding lead in the polls despite a barrage of negative advertising, the Grocery Manufacturers Association was slapped with a money-laundering lawsuit filed by the Washington State attorney general.

And who might these donors be? The same donors who badly needed shielding after a massive consumer backlash to their hefty campaign donations which helped defeat Prop 37, the nation’s first GMO labeling initiative narrowly defeated in California last November–Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Kellogg, General Mills, and Kraft, to name a few.

At that point, Pam Johnson of Moms for Labeling called on the attorney general “ to step in and defend the voters of Washington from out-of-state corporations that are ignoring our law. The court said that only he can do it.”

And step in he did.

Yesterday Ferguson filed suit in Thurston County Superior Court asking for a temporary restraining order and for the GMA to immediately comply with state disclosure laws, indicating who contributed, how much they contributed, and how the money was spent to oppose I 522. He is also requesting civil penalties and cost of investigation and trial, including reasonable attorneys fees.

We asked several mothers leading the labeling movement–both local and national–to comment on yesterday’s stunning developments:

Tara Cook-Littman, Founder GMO Free CT, Mother Of Three
“The movement to label GMOs is about transparency and honesty. It is no surprise the GMA has been anything but truthful and I commend the Attorney General from Washington for standing up and demanding integrity in the process. I believe this is a sign of good things to come from Washington state!”

Zen Honeycutt, Founder and Director, Moms Across America, Mother of Three
“Moms know when someone is trying to hide something. We also know it doesn’t work. We will not settle when it comes to the health of our children or the integrity of our food system. We applaud Washington’s stand for integrity in suing the GMA for transparency.”

This is not only a win for those of us working on I-522 and labeling GMOs, but for citizens everywhere. We are constantly dealing with corporations who use their lobbying and front groups to do their dirty work and throw massive amounts money around to get whatever they want. It’s about time they are held accountable and I am very happy we actually have a government official doing their job!

Katheen Hallal, Co-Founder, Moms Across America, Mother of Three“Moms are shining the light on those who would keep us in the dark regarding what we are feeding our families. Given that so many of our children now have health issues that we had never even heard of in our own childhoods, we are impervious to whatever spin big food companies create with their millions. We are mothers, we will seek out the truth, and we will stop at nothing to protect our children. That includes knowing what is in our food. We have no tolerance for corruption in any arena that may affect our children and future generations. Thank you Moms for Labeling and Attorney General Bob Ferguson for standing up for what is right!”

Alexis Baden-Mayer, political director of the Organic Consumers Association, Mother of TwoThis is a sweet victory for Moms for Labeling! It’s also a victory for the thousands of people who contacted Washington State Attorney General, Bob Ferguson, asking him to investigate the GMA for money laundering. Most of all, it’s a victory for consumers. And the truth. Food companies don’t want us to know that they’re spending millions to keep GMO labels off their products. But we do know. And we know who they are – the same companies who spent millions last year to defeat GMO labeling in California. That’s why we’re boycotting them.

Robyn O’Brien, Founder, Executive Director AllergyKids Foundation, Author “The Unhealthy Truth: How Our Food Is Making Us Sick and What We Can Do About It.”, Mother Of Four While it is understandable that the chemical companies manufacturing these genetically engineered ingredients have a fiduciary duty to their shareholders to shield them from the liability that labeling these ingredients might bring, at what point does it become the fiduciary duty of the companies that are members of the Grocery Manufacturers Association to respond to this groundswell of consumer sentiment? Attorney General Ferguson’s decision brings a transparency to this issue, by asking for disclosure, so that mothers and those making the purchasing decisions can understand which companies are aligned with consumers and which ones are aligned with the chemical companies. Given that members of the Grocery Manufacturers Association have responded to consumer sentiment overseas and either labeled or removed these ingredients in their products in other countries, it will be interesting to see which company will be the first to do it here.

Diana Reeves, Founder GMO Free USA, Mother of 3
I would like to commend Attorney General Ferguson for standing up for transparency and our freedom to choose what we eat and feed our families and to thank “Moms for Labeling” for taking the lead on this most important issue. As a mother of 3, who lost her firstborn after a 2 year battle with cancer, I have zero tolerance for any company or organization that unnecessarily puts our children at risk.

I founded GMO Free USA in response to a failed attempt to label GMOs in CT in 2012, and began mobilizing moms & dads from around the country to speak collectively to Kellogg’s, a company that markets their GMO products primarily to children. We have been all over them for over a year, calling them out for their contribution of approx. $800,000 to the propaganda campaign that defeated Prop. 37 to label GMOs in CA last November. We are hitting them where it hurts and Kellogg’s US sales were down by over 3% last quarter. It’s no wonder Kellogg’s and the other big food companies are trying to hide their contributions to the No on 522 campaign in Washington. Kellogg’s, and companies like them, must be held accountable for their deceptive lack of labeling and for the toxins they are feeding our precious children. There are many of us who, after meticulous and careful elimination diets, are certain that GMOs make us sick. We NEED to know if it’s GMO. Without a label, there is no traceability, no accountability and no liability. The chemical companies that are manipulating our food and the big food companies they are in bed with want to keep it this way. We will continue to call them out, to vote with our dollars and to relentlessly grow the Kellogg’s boycott until they get the message that we are Moms on a mission and we won’t give up until they stop sourcing Roundup Ready Bt toxic GMOs. Yes on I-522.

Carin Chase, Director of Grassroots Constituencies for the Yes On 522 Campaign, Mother
“The GMA is trying to hide their donors just like they are trying to hide what is in our food – it’s our right to know!”

Pamm Larry, Founder Label GMOs, Initial Instigator of Prop 37, Mother Of Three/Grandmother of Two
It is a relief to see that honesty and ethics still exist in Washington’s Attorney General’s Office. Thank you to the Moms For Labeling who are representing all Moms everywhere who want the truth on labels and in elections. These brave stands by mothers are sending a strong message to our elected officials and processed food companies that we demand labels to know what they are putting in the food we give our children.The GMA’s tactics are indicative of the business ethics rampant in our food system . They are a reflection of how they and the no side’s other donors (the 5 largest chemical companies in the world) operate in our political system. It’s a reflection of their whole campaign against I-522. I hope that those who were being misled by the GMA’s attempts at confusing Washington’s electorate are now enlightened as to how they operate in an election that’s about a simple label.

Rachel Linden, Founder and Director GMO Free Arizona, Mother Of Two, 20-year U.S. Small Business Owner
The Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) is trying to give value to its members by providing security in the form of public relations and legislative control. In reality they are positioned as an extension of the long-standing corporate biotech agenda, pushing genetically engineered food (GMOs) and promoting a facade of safety and enhanced nutrition while ignoring the growing and overwhelming body of evidence to the contrary.

The top five contributors to GMA’s anti labeling campaign (according to the No on I-522) are: Monsanto, DuPont Pioneer, Dow AgroSciences and Bayer CropScience. These are not grocery or food companies; these are chemical companies.

The Washington state attorney general’s allegations regarding campaign finance fraud on the part of GMA are not surprising. Consistently, the GMA has shown a lack of integrity which reflects poorly on their member companies.

I understand why savvy businesses like Starbucks are leaving the GMA as to not soil their valued reputation by supporting an organization that sides against the health and trust of American and international consumers, while endangering the security of the United States, and ultimately the stability of the world’s food supply.

GMA is out of touch with consumers.

Sales of products labeled non-GMO are skyrocketing. Consumer rejection of GMOs are reflected in the demand for mandatory GMO labeling, which is already enjoyed by 3 billion people in over 62 other countries.
GMA’s behavior will no doubt show up in negative TV ads attempting to defeat another labeling initiative in Washington state further driving home the lack of integrity and consumer confidence in an industry that refuses to embrace transparency.

The GMA can no longer afford to alienate their members from their customers by fighting GMO labeling and fighting moms like me.

Leah Segedie, Creator of Mamavation and ShiftCon Social Media Conference, Mother of Three young children

“I call this karma. The Grocers Manufacturers Association has spent millions of dollars trying to convince the public to vote against their own interests. It’s effectively a censorship campaign and moms don’t like censorship when it comes to protecting our families. We WANT that information. As a rule of thumb, when people work to hide information from you it’s not usually about YOUR best interests, it’s about THEIR best interests. The GMA doesn’t care about moms or breaking the law, they care about censoring our right to know. They are going to lose. It’s just a matter of how much time, effort and money they want to waste in this GMO censorship campaign. In California, they spent millions of dollars telling people there was something called a “GMO” in their food. And now people, especially moms, are curious. The genie is out of the bottle. And by breaking the law in Washington State, they have effectively shot themselves in the foot. The brands they convinced to participate will lose public trust. And they need the trust of moms to survive in the grocery store.”

Tami Monroe Canal, Founder March Against Monsanto, Mother of Two
I feel that a lawsuit is the only course of action there is in light of the fact that GMA has laundered donation money in an effort to sway the vote in Washington.

“I applaud the efforts of “Mom’s for Labeling” who are the real heroes here. They dared to file the original lawsuit against the GMA. Then, the subsequent dismissal and and “SLAPP” fine imposed by Judge Wickham was simply outrageous. Thankfully, Attorney General Bob Ferguson is doing his job, shining light in dark corners. Hopefully, the next judge will dismiss that ridiculous $10,000 fine. Goodness, people! This is only a labeling effort! Moms know what the big corporations are trying to hide. ‘You can fool some of the people all of the time, and all of the people some of the time….but you can’t fool Mom!”

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